STARKVILLE, Miss. (WCBI) – Unity Park is now home to new name plaques highlighting local trailblazers of the Civil Rights era. In a Juneteenth celebration, Mrs. Monica Banks and Mr. Clarence Taylor were added to the Unity Wall. Banks was the first black Chancery Clerk for Oktibbeha County and served the community for more than 20 years. Taylor fought for…
ALABAMA, Miss. (WCBI) – Alabama voters head back to the polls tomorrow to take care of some unfinished business. There are statewide runoffs in a number of races and a local race in Pickens County. There is only one race on the Democratic side of the ticket. Yolanda Rochelle Flowers and Malika Sanders Fortier square off to see who will…
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Mississippi University for Women invited area residents to help celebrate Juneteenth. The W hosted a program at Fant Memorial Library to observe the holiday. Library staff have set up an exhibit in the main lobby, and Dean of Library Services, Amanda Powers, is spearheading an effort to collect oral histories of people’s Juneteenth memories. Juneteenth was…
PICKENS COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Funeral services begin Monday evening for state Representative Lynn Wright. Visitation is from five until eight at Skelton Funeral Home in Reform. The funeral service will be Tuesday at 2 PM at Mount Zion Baptist Church in the New Hope community of Lowndes County. There will be visitation one hour before the service and immediately…
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Columbus police continue to investigate a Sunday night shooting where at least 70 shots were fired. The shooting happened about 10:30 Sunday night in a busy shopping center parking lot, just off Highway 45. Officers first learned of the shooting after someone showed up at Baptist Golden Triangle with a gunshot would to the leg. Police…
Ever wondered how weather radar works? Meteorologist Jackson Chastain has the scoop on radar in the latest edition of Weather Whys. Categories: Featured, Featured Weather, Local News, Weather
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI) – Juneteenth celebrations took place all over the Golden Triangle this weekend. From the park to the parade routes, we were not short of festivities. People showed their Juneteenth spirit for the historical holiday in Columbus. It all started with a parade on Main Street in Columbus and continued at Sim Scott park with vendors and people…
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI)- The temperature is rising almost everyday it seems and folks are doing what they can to stay cool. School is out and kids still want to be active, but the summer heat is pushing them inside. Two places in Columbus are adjusting to the temperatures to try and have fun in the AC. “It gets really hot…
TUPELO, Miss (WCBI) – Tupelo is gearing up for its observance of the Juneteenth holiday. On Saturday, the city of Tupelo will mark the day with a parade, speakers, and music at Gumtree Park. Juneteenth honors the anniversary of June 19, 1865, when Union soldiers arrived in Texas with word that President Abraham Lincoln had issued the Emancipation Proclamation, ending…
NOXUBEE COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) -Two business partners in Columbus could face up to 75 years in prison and fines of more than 2 million dollars after being accused of sending in fraudulent documentation in PPP Loans. Jabari Edwards and Antwann Richardson are also accused of using the money to gift friends and family and even making donations to Jackson State…
TUPELO, Miss. (WCBI) – Mississippi’s First Lady is encouraging everyone to spend part of their weekend helping others. First Lady Elee Reeves is helping to host a day of service on Saturday. The First Lady will be helping to clean up trash in Vicksburg as part of ” Mississippi Serves, a day to volunteer.” The First Lady will be working…
TUPELO, MISS. (WCBI) – State Farm agents in the Tupelo area are making the 100th birthday of that company with a donation to help hungry people in the region. State Farm agents sponsored a party in Fairpark during the lunch hour, giving away free snow cones to guests. It was also an opportunity for the agents to donate 10 thousand…
TUPELO, MISS. (WCBI) – A report on cybersecurity in public school districts across Mississippi shows mixed results, according to the State Auditor. State Auditor Shad White released the report “Cybersecurity in School Districts” on Thursday. The state auditor was the guest speaker at the Tupelo Kiwanis Club and said the report shows that some school districts are taking appropriate…
LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – COVID-19 cases are on the rise again. Members at Allegro plaza say they’ve seen more people coming in and testing positive for the virus. For about a month they had not seen many patients coming in with symptoms or testing positive but in the last couple of weeks, they’ve seen otherwise. “Most people are presenting…
CLAY COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Clay County deputies arrest a man accused of taking a van, with a plan. Albert Dale Chism of West Point is in the Clay County Jail charged with Grand Larceny. According to the Clay County Sheriff’s Department, Chism stole a van out of someone else’s yard, took it to a scrapyard, and sold it for…
CLAY COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – The Clay County Sheriff’s Office gets some new tactical equipment thanks to the generosity of its neighbors. The 4 County Foundation donated $10,000 to the Sheriff’s Office. The money will be used by the Sheriff’s Special Response Team to buy helmets with integrated hands-free radios. The team is made up of 7 members and a…
LOWNDES COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Lowndes County investigators make an arrest in a deadly shooting. 26-year-old Joshua Whitley is charged with second-degree murder. He remains in the Lowndes County jail waiting on his initial appearance. The shooting happened Thursday evening on Ben Christopher Road in the New Hope community. Sheriff Eddie Hawkins says Whitley and 25-year-old Monique McDonald got into…
ALABAMA (WCBI) – More people have joined Alabama’s workforce, keeping the state with the lowest unemployment rate in the southeast. Governor Kay Ivey announced today Alabama’s May unemployment rate is 2.7%. That’s down from April’s rate of 2.8%. Ivey says the state’s average weekly wages have risen by 20% since May 2019. In our area, Lamar County’s unemployment rate is…
CALEDONIA, Miss. (WCBI) – Thursday marked the start of the Mississippi Dizzy Dean state softball tournament in Caledonia. But for four members of the Caledonia 12 and under All-Stars, it marks the end of an era. Katelyn Hill, Kennedy Trotter, Rylee Clardy and Gaige Downs have come a long way since they first stepped onto the diamond together. “When we…
NEW HOPE, Miss. (WCBI) – The Lowndes County Sheriff’s Department is investigating a domestic incident where a woman was shot and killed at her home in New Hope Thursday evening. Lowndes County Sheriff Eddie Hawkins says deputies responded to a report of gunfire in the 400 block of Ben Christopher Road sometime after 5 p.m. The sheriff says the victim…
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI)- The sun is blazing and the temperature isn’t expected to cool off anytime soon. Summer camps are going on but camp leaders say they’re monitoring kids time outside to try and keep them cool. “Try to limit our outside activity. We were outside yesterday for a kickball game and we had fun with that, but before we…
COLUMBUS, Miss. (WCBI)- Around 9 a.m. federal agencies made their way inside the J5 building in Columbus. State and local law enforcement agencies also assisted going through the building and collecting files. Here’s what we know at this moment. ” It’s bad for the city and it’s bad for J5,” said Gaven. That’s the statement former city council member Bill…
MONROE COUNTY, Miss. (WCBI) – Former Aberdeen Mayor Maurice Howard finds himself facing another embezzlement charge, even with a reported name change. Richland Police tell WCBI Howard rented a vehicle from Enterprise and refused to return the vehicle. Now, he’s charged with embezzlement under contract. Investigators also say Howard used the name Maurice Jackson to rent the truck. Howard is…